Kosovo Women's Network

KWN Members Cooperate on Drafting a Feminist Strategy

23.10.2020

Over the course of three days (21-23 October), representatives of around 90 member organizations of the Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) gathered at the KWN Feminist Strategy Planning Workshop, held in Durrës, Albania. In compliance with safeguard measures against COVID-19, masks were required, and social distancing was enforced.

Ariana-Qosaj Mustafa, Chair of the KWN Board, and Igballe Rogova, Executive Director of KWN, spoke about the importance of such meetings in uniting women towards achieving gender equality in their opening remarks.

” During these days, we will work together in drafting the feminist strategy; we can do this and implement it only as a team. We must never forget that solidarity remains the key pillar of feminism; without solidarity there is no feminism or empowerment”, Rogova said.

The second day of the workshop continued with sharing experiences and opinions, in five working groups, divided as follows:

More young women and men involved in the feminist movement;
Transformation of norms: changes in the early childhood education;
Public opinion on feminism;
Advancing feminism internationally; and
Access and inclusion of women from rural areas

Among the recommendations derived from group work are as follows:

Advocate and work, together with the members, for the Istanbul Convention to be implemented;
Consider opportunities on amending the Law on the Use of Languages, to prohibit discriminatory terms against women;
Achieve socio-economic equality between men and women;
Increase employment of women;
Monitor the committees for subsidies, so that there is a transparent allocation of subsidies by implementing the affirmative measures of the Law on Gender Equality (LGE);
Greater involvement of young people in the feminist movement;
Invite boys/men in activities to achieve gender equality; and
Involve more young men and women in the feminist movement.

A part of the workshop was chaired by Zana Hoxha, Executive Director of KWN member organization ARTPOLIS, who engaged members in group and creative activities through the “Road towards sustainability of women activists” activity.

The workshop was supported by the Kvinna Till Kvinna Foundation.

More photos from the workshop can be found HERE.

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“Moravski Biser” Advocates for Women’s Rights to Inheritance in 5 Different Municipalities

22.10.2020

In the framework of the initiative “The harmonization of traditional inheritance norms with the legal framework”, Moravski Biser, member organisation of the Kosovo Women’s Network, held five meetings withboth women and men in the municipalities of Partesh, Kllokot, Ranilug, Kamenica and the village of Shillovo, from November 2019 to February 2020.

34 participants from the Serb community (25 women and 9 men) have directly benefited from this initiative through completing trainings where they were introduced to the basic principles of gender equality, governing legislation , and pertinent mechanisms that support gender equality in Kosovo, property rights and the right for inheritance.

The leader of the training was Vesna Jovanović, Project Coordinator of Moravski Biser, who shared statistics on the number of women who inherited the property.

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“For the municipality of Partesh in the period from 2016 to the end of 2019, a total of 50 people began the procedure of transferring property in the name of a woman. In the municipality of Ranilulg a total of 39 people for the same period, in the municipality of Kllokot a total of 24 people, in Gjilan, counting only the village of Shillovo, a total of 7 people, while in Kamenica, a total of 17. ” said Jovanović adding that “I hope that in 2020 we will have an increase of women in this dataset.”

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The final activity of the project was the round table on “Gender equality in property registration in a woman’s name”. The meeting was attended by women and men from the mentioned municipalities, representatives of civil society from the Gjilan region, as well as officials, directors of local self-government where the position of women and subsequent property rights was discussed, as well as best practices.

This model was created to create a more favorable ground for women to enjoy the right to inheritance, thanks to the support received from the 13th round of the Kosovo Women’s Fund (KWF) with funding from the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).

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Gender Responsive Budgeting: A Recap of Milestones and a Glimpse to the Future

20.10.2020

By: Donjeta Morina

Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) has become a buzz-word in Kosovo. It is a term used frequently by government officials, civil society organizations, and international donors. In fact, it is so frequently used and so infrequently defined that I personally had a very difficult time grasping its meaning back in 2013 when I first encountered it. Now, after seven years of working with the Kosovo Women’s Network on GRB I have come to the conclusion that the term is infrequently defined because there are widespread misconceptions and widespread lack of knowledge on what it actually is. In 2013, I applied and got accepted to a position with the Kosovo Women’s Network. When Igballe Rogova, KWN Executive Director and Nicole Farnsworth KWN Programme Director told me I would be trained to work with GRB, I thought it would be some kind of mechanism distributing funds to women! Well, I was completely wrong and turns out, many of my colleagues and peers share my misunderstandings. I decided to write this article to recount my experiences with GRB, clear up some common misconceptions, and to narrate the important milestones KWN’s work has led to.

Let’s begin by highlighting that, contrary to popular belief, Government budgets are not gender neutral, and do not by default benefit women and men equally. Due to their differing social and economic circumstances, women and men have different needs and priorities. Governments are responsible to ensure that women and men’s potentially different needs and priorities are tackled through budget allocations. The false assumption that government budgets are neutral can lead to reinforcing and sustaining existing gender inequalities. This is where GRB comes into play. By analyzing women and men’s different needs and priorities, GRB ensures a gender perspective throughout the cycle of planning, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating government budgets. GRB can be integrated in all economic categories, including, salaries, goods and services, subsidies and transfers, and even capital investments. As long as there is an in-depth gender analysis, GRB can be integrated in all government expenditures.

GRB remains a very misunderstood concept. For instance, it is frequently believed that GRB requires a separate budget line for women. This is incorrect; GRB requires funds to be spent equitably between men, women, boys, and girls addressing each groups particular needs. Moreover, GRB does not require simply a budget line to the Gender Equality Officer or the Women’s Caucus. Providing funds for activities for these two entities is very important, but GRB stands for gender mainstreaming in all economic categories and goes above and beyond simply providing an additional budget line. Further, GRB does not necessarily require additional funds from the Municipality. Regardless of the municipality’s finances for one particular fiscal year, they can all be spent in a gender sensitive manner. GRB requires the different needs of men and women to be considered throughout the budget phases in all economic categories.

GRB has not yet been fully institutionalized in Kosovo. However, the last seven years have shown many milestones and successes. In 2014, the Kosovo Women’s Network together with the Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbet (GIZ) lobbied to the Ministry of Finance towards institutionalizing GRB. As of 2014, the Budget Circulars that are published annually by the Ministry as guidelines for how municipalities and ministries should plan budgets, include guidelines on GRB as well. These guidelines are mandatory and all budget organizations should provide information on current and planned beneficiaries of expenditures, disaggregated by gender. While this in and of itself is not an institutionalization of GRB, it is an important first step in the long and winding road of fully institutionalizing GRB.

A long advocacy process by the Kosovo Women’s Network, the Agency for Gender Equality (AGE), and other partners led to GRB becoming a legal obligation for all public institutions in Kosovo in 2015. Institutions were then faced with a new legal obligation and few internal capacities on how to implement it. With its limited resources KWN provided direct support to several local and central institutions on how to implement the new legal requirements of GRB. KWN directly supported, among others, the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development, the Ministry of Diaspora, and the municipalities of Kamenica, Gjakova, Hani i Elezit and Prishtina. This was done via support from partners, most notably the Austrian Development Agency and USAID. Among others KWN provided concrete guidelines and recommendations on how to implement GRB, but also specifically trained officials.

This GRB training curriculum was later taken as a best practice by the Kosovo Institute for Public Administration (KIPA) and AGE. KIPA has continued with trainings for public officials, using KWN’s GRB training curricula.

AGE and the Ministry of Finance have continued their work, building on prior achievements by drafting a concept for better institutionalizing GRB in Kosovo. If adopted, this could set a clearer way forward for ensuring that all institutions regularly implement GRB, contributing to better, more transparent expenditures for women and men in Kosovo.

So, what have we learned so far? We have learned that fully institutionalizing GRB is not an easy task. Lack of gender disaggregated data, lack of political will, and a lack of internal capacities for gender analyses are only some of the difficulties that continue to undermine full institutionalization of GRB in Kosovo. While there is a long road ahead, KWN’s experience does show that through professionalism, capacities in gender analysis, and close cooperation with public institution, we are on the right track to institutionalizing GRB.

About the author: Donjeta Morina is a gender mainstreaming and gender responsive budgeting expert. She has been working with KWN since 2013 in integrating a gender perspective and gender budgeting into public policies and institutions.

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“Ruka Ruci” Continues Activities to Strengthen Women’s Participation in Politics

15.10.2020

On October 15, Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) member organization, “Ruka Ruci”, held a workshop that discussed the Law on Gender Equality (LGE), legislation regulating women’s participation in politics and European Union (EU) legislation on gender equality.

A total of 12 women from Mitrovica, Novo Brdo, Gracanica, Lipjan, Partesh and Ranillug discussed capacity building for women’s involvement in politics and the decision-making process. Representatives from KFOR were also present.

Nevenka Rikallo, Project Coordinator within the “Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics” initiative, shared the purpose and expected results of this initiative.

Moderator Radmila Kapetanovi, briefed the participants on the legal and institutional framework for promoting increased participation of women in politics.

During the discussion Gordana Toskiq, Executive Director of “Ruka Ruci”, informed the audience that the Lobby for Gender Equality (Lobby) would be gathering soon. This organization has a key role in uniting women who want to take on decision-making roles in their community, as well as holding pertinent workshops and trainings.

“If each of us takes only a few steps in the right direction of dialogue, cooperation, and peace building, then we will be closer to achieving justice and gender equality between women and men in Kosovo.” she said.

Duushica Stojkovi, NGO Ženski inkluzivni centar” from Novo Brdo, talked about terms and concepts related to gender, such as; gender mainstreaming, gender sensitivity, gender equality, and gender justice; and how these terms need to be explained more often and thoroughly to the youth in the community. All of these concepts are key parts of Kosovo legislature, but are not necessarily implemented or discussed within families, communities, or local politics.

Further, Vesna Stajic, participant, discussed the existing institutional mechanisms for gender equality, emphasizing the positive role that the Agency for Gender Equality (AGE) and Gender Equality Officers have at the local level.

However, according to her, the LGE has a few shortcomings, as it does not provide sanctions for political parties, or other institutions that do not implement it.

During the discussion, another participant, Sonja Stojanovic, said that there are still obstacles in women’s involvement in elections. She mentioned the lack of political will and perception of society, as factors that hinder the construction of an equal society between men and women.

Conclusively, participants agreed that it is necessary to organize more meetings with youth, women and non-majority communities in rural areas.

This workshop was hosted in a continuity of the initiative “Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics”, supported by the European Union (EU) Office in Kosovo.

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A Discussion about the Importance of Economic Empowerment in Preventing Violence against Women

14.10.2020

Photo Credits: KCGS

On October 14, a consultative meeting “Economic Empowerment as a Precondition for Preventing and Combating Domestic Violence and Gender-Based Violence”, organized by the AGE and Kosovar Gender Studies Centre (KGSC) was held, to mark the 25^thanniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform Action, the 20^th anniversary of Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, and the 15^th anniversary of the Agency for Gender Equality (AGE)

The purpose of this meeting was to strengthen knowledge, stimulate cooperation between institutional actors in combating gender-based violence, and emphasize economic empowerment as a precondition for preventing and eliminating these forms of violence.

Participants in the panel were representatives of institutions, women’s organizations, as well as international organizations.

Igballe Rogova, Executive Director of the Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN), called for institutions to coordinate their agendas and put a priority on gender equality.

She praised AGE’s work of over 15 years since its establishment, recalling the continuous persistence of women’s organizations for this institution to operate within the Prime Minister’s office.

“AGE is one of the three key factors of cooperation towards functioning and achieving gender equality in Kosovo, together with donors and women’s organizations”, she added, inviting donors to consult with AGE on investments towards achieving gender equality in Kosovo.

The Executive Director of KGSC, Luljeta Demolli expressed her concerns about women still not bring represented in the public sphere, adding that their hardships have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The legislation is not being implemented properly. Violence remains a constant threat and reality. It is very important that the addressing of violence is a priority of the institutions and every challenge is followed according to the Istanbul Convention; that is also foreseen by the Constitution of Kosovo. Apart from addressing violence against women, we must also reflect on economic empowerment,” she said.

Further, Karin Hernmarck Ahliny, the Ambassador of Sweden to Kosovo, pointed to the Swedish government’s aims for feminist policies, one of the key points of which is economic and social empowerment.

“Economic empowerment means autonomy – having the opportunity to move away from a relationship in which you are not treated as a human being,” she said.

Ulrika Richardson, United Nations Development Coordinator, shared the work of the UN Agencies during the Covid-19 pandemic, devoting a portion of her speech to the importance of women in the workforce.

“If we exclude women from the economy, it means a huge loss of income for our societies. If an approximate number of women and men were included in the workforce, global GDP would increase by $12 trillion”, she added.

In addition, present at this meeting were Teuta Haxhiu, Member of Parliament, Ardita Dushi, Adviser to the Prime Minister, as well as Florian Dushi, Deputy Minister of Justice / National Coordinator Against Domestic Violence.

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OPDMK Holds GWD’s Annual Meeting

10.10.2020

The Organization of Persons with Muscular Dystrophy of Kosovo (OPDMK) has continued its activities within the initiative “Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics”, supported by the European Union (EU) Office in Kosovo.

On October 10, OPDMK held its annual meeting in Prizren with the Women with Disabilities Group (WDG) to discuss more about the year’s activities. Activities for the remainder of the year were also planned during this meeting.

The Executive Director of OPDMK, Antigona Shestan, spoke about the importance of this meeting.

“WDG representatives need to engage as much as possible with women of different abilities who can be more involved in WDG on daily basis and thus contribute to the realization of their needs and goals. In this way we will be a voice that will be heard in public, and only in this way we will remove all obstacles, not only for us as a group, but also for all women with disabilities”, she said.

Resmije Rrahmani, Mobilizer within this project in OPDMK, says that meetings like this are vital for improving the position of women and girls with disabilities in Kosovo.

“We intended to share the achievements with each other, as well as talk about planned activities. I hope next year to have more activities together, given that this year we were somewhat limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic”, says Rahmani.

The participant Pranvera Musaj considered this meeting as a very fruitful.

“Discussions like this have a positive effect on each of us, especially because it has been a while since we last met for already known reasons. In my opinion, meetings like this increase the capacity of WDG, and moreover generally improve the position of women with disabilities”, says Musaj.

The participants valued this meeting and pledged for further cooperation to improve the position of women and girls with disabilities in Kosovo.

In July this year, OPDMK marked the Dystrophy Week. For more information regarding this event, click HERE.

These activities are supported by the European Union (EU) Office in Kosovo through the initiative “Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics”. For more about these activities click HERE.

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Svet Andjela Holds Training on Legal Frameworks for Human Rights in North Mitrovica

09.10.2020

NGO “Svet Andjela” within the initiative “Women in Focus” held nine workshops in three municipalities of Mitrovica: North Mitrovica, Zecan and Zubin Potok. The leaders of the workshops were Radmila Kapetanovic together with the Director of NGO “Svet Andjela” and Project Coordinator, Vasiljka Voinović.

Regular activities and meetings started in November and lasted until March. Svet Andjela managed to raise awareness among 168 women and men.

The workshops included topics such as: Legal framework for human rights; Mechanisms for gender equality; Mechanism for the prevention of violence against women; Law on Gender Equality and Discrimination, as well as Prejudices and Stereotypes. The greatest emphasis during these train was placed on explaining women’s right to inheritance.

A special lecture was organized to inform the participants about the Istanbul Convention. During this lecture the trainers introduced the Law on Family, the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence, the Law on Gender Equality, the Criminal Code, the Law on the Ombudsperson, and the Law against Discrimination.

“In the workshop held on the legal framework, the participants did not have much knowledge about the laws that apply in Kosovo, that they do not believe in institutions and the implementation of laws,” said Kapetanovic. He proceeded to add that women in northern Kosovo are concerned that domestic violence cases do not receive proper treatment, there is no telephone line, counseling center for women victims of violence, or safe house or shelter for victims”.

Mr. Voinović stressed that “problems and priorities were identified in all three municipalities, and a local advocacy action was developed. In the municipality of Zubin Potok, only one local action was implemented by the local government. In the municipality of Zvecan, there were three local actions taken by women, who participated in the training with the help of the local government and the service company”.

This initiative is supported by the Kosovo Women’s Fund (KWF) and funded by the European Union (EU) Office in Kosovo.

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WBA Holds Trainings on the Gender Equality Index

08.10.2020

In the framework of the “Gender Equality Index in Local Self-Government in North Mitrovica” initiative, the member organization of the Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN), Udruženje Poslovnih Žena (WBA) held trainings and meetings with Office for Communities and Return, Gender Equality Officers, representatives from the Office for Social Welfare and Health, Chief of Urban Planning and official of the coordination mechanism.

Although gender equality index is a relatively new concept in Kosovo, its importance was acknowledged by participants who through an interactive discussion understood more about basic concepts, differences between gender and, the role of women and men in society as well as stereotypes that have traditionally prevailed among us.

WBA also conducted trainings led by expert Radmila Kapetanovic and Olivera Milosevic, Executive Director of WBA with eight local government officials and six coordination mechanism officials on the concept and implementation, as well as how to complete questionnaires, compile statistics, in every six months.

“Change comes slowly, changes will come when everyone realizes that equality is a right that belongs to every woman and girl. Gender budgeting is not only for women, but it is for both genders”, said Radmila Kapetanovic, a lecturer at this workshop.

The training was held in Gracanica where the former Minister of Local Government Administration, Adrijana Hodhiiq and the Deputy Mayor of Graicanica were also present.

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“We do not have many women in decision-making positions, we should not compete for positions but rather support each other, show solidarity. Women should contribute to their positions”, said former minister Adrijana Hodžić. 

Participants during the training learned how everyone in their field can contribute to monitoring and improving the Gender Equality Index. Above all, they learned what gender equality means in practice and in everyday life.

This initiative is supported by the Kosovo Women’s Fund (KWF) and funded by the European Union (EU) Office in Kosovo.

In addition to Udruženje Poslovnih Žena (WBA), beneficiaries of the 13th round of KWF are 17 other member organizations. You can read the full list HERE.

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Security Begins at Home: No Peace without Justice

07.10.2020

Photo Credits: KFOR

On 7 October, on the eve of the 20^th Anniversary of the United Nations Security Council 1325 for Women, Peace and Security, KFOR hosted a conference where several speakers discussed the implementation of this resolution in Kosovo with focus on security, inclusion and partnership.

Key speakers, who have been at the forefront in the implementation of UNSCR 1325 in Kosovo, shared their work and experience from the past two decades.

Igballe Rogova, Executive Director of Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN), shared the work of KWN and other women’s rights activists who have continuously been fighting for gender equity, peace and security in her keynote address.

“Security begins at home; therefore, we have to provide security for women at home. There is no peace without justice!” said Rogova, while adding that justice was never served for survivors of sexual violence during the war, the victims of the subsequent massacres, nor for the families of missing persons.

Rogova underlined the importance of cooperation between women civil society organizations (WCSOs) at both the local and regional level. She also stated her appreciation for donor support given to WCSOs throughout the years.

Former President of Kosovo, Atifete Jahjaga, shared her experience as the first woman president of the country and her work toward empowering women and youth, through the Jahjaga Foundation platform.

“I decided to use the authority that I built throughout my public service career, especially in the office of the President”.

Further, the first woman Speaker of the Assembly of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, reaffirmed the importance of such coordination between institutions and women’s organizations.

“Everything that has been achieved is a result of a cooperation model, involving the Parliament, the Agency for Gender Equality, International Organizations, Civil Society Organizations and the media”, Osmani added.

She noted that in accordance with Resolution 1325, women should be directly and fully involved in the Dialogue with Serbia as well as constantly consulted during the process.

Edi Gusia, director of the Agency for Gender Equality (AGE), considers AGE’s drafting of public policies as working platforms for gender equality in Kosovo as one of its main achievements.

“The landmark decision of the first Action Plan for the implementation of Resolution 1325 (2013-2015), was the amendment of the law for the civil victims and veterans. It was in this amendment where survivors of sexual violence became part of the law”, Gusia said.

Other speakers at this conference were Clare Hutchinson, NATO Secretary General Special Representative for Women, Peace and Security; Major General Michele RISI, Commander of KFOR; Vlora-Tuzi Nushi, Head of UN Women in Kosovo; Chiara Tagliani, Gender Advisor at EULEX; Javiera Thais Santa Cruz, Gender Advisor UN Mission in Kosovo; Annette M. FATH-LIHIC, Political Advisor EU Special Representative in Kosovo, Safete Gacaferri, Executive Director of NGO Jeta; Adriana HODZIC, Principal Executive Officer, Municipality of North Mitrovica; Brigadier General Irfete SPAHIU, KSF;

Resolution 1325 was adopted unanimously on 31 October 2000 by the UNSCR, as a milestone in recognizing women’s unique role in international peace and security.

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The Lipjan Youth Center Holds the Closing Workshop for the “Supporting Girls and Women for Active Participation in the Economy” Initiative

06.10.2020

On September 25- 27, the Lipljan Youth Center (LYC) held a workshop on “Developing an Orientation Document on Local Policy to Support Women Start-ups and Increase Participation in Decision-Making”, with women entrepreneurs in Lipjan. This activity was held within the initiative “Supporting girls and women for active participation in the economy”, supported by the Kosovo Women’s Fund (KWF) and funded by UN Women.

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The purpose of the three-day workshop was to draft a document which will be ready for municipal authorities’ approval. This document reflects the assessments and needs of small businesses in the region.

Participants were relevant local actors, such as NGOs and local small business owners, who have influence and can contribute to this policy, which will effect the well-being of women and young women entrepreneurs.

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The leader of the workshop, economist Driton Berisha, together with the participants of the workshop, compiled and finalized the document for support of the business sector.

Berisha, among other things, informed the participants about the decision-making processes and the development of local policies, as well as the identification of challenges and problems of new businesses.

In addition to Lipljan Youth Center, beneficiaries of the 14th round of KWF are 19 other member organizations. You can read the full list HERE.

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